Featured Alumni

PhD candidate Andrew Ferguson was quoted in The Guardian speaking about the works of science-fiction author RA Lafferty. The article credits Ferguson, alongside fellow enthusiast Neil Gaiman, for rekindling interest in Lafferty, described in the article as "the most important science-fiction writer you've never heard of." Ferguson is currently writing a biography of the author for the University of Illinois Modern Masters of Science Fiction series and will chair a panel on Lafferty on 14 August at Loncon, the World Science Fiction Convention, being held at London's Docklands.

This fall, American author James Salter will teach and lecture for the semester as the University of Virginia’s Kapnick Foundation Distinguished Writer in Residence. The residency, which begins with Salter’s visit, exists to create an open, unconstrained conversation between students and a literary master.

UVa Emeritus Professor of English E. D. Hirsh, writes Politico, can be credited with the foundation of the Common Core teaching standards, currently adopted in 43 out of 50 American states. Developed in 2009 by the National Governors Association to better prepare students for the demands of college and the workplace, the Common Core spells out learning goals for grades K-12. According to David Coleman, who is often called the “architect” of the Common Core, Hirsch’s research showing the fundamental connection between knowledge and literacy “is absolutely foundational.”

Professor Paul Cantor explains what Shakespeare can teach us about politics on a new website in the Great Thinkers series. The centerpiece of this website is a set of 25 lectures given by Cantor on Shakespeare and politics, covering eight of Shakespeare's plays. Check out the website, facebook page, and twitter feed!

Professor Gregory Orr reflects in TheNew York Times on the recent incident in which a nine-year-old girl shot and killed her instructor at an Arizona gun range. Professor Orr, author of 12 books of poetry and a memoir titled The Blessing, accidentally killed his younger brother in a hunting accident when he was 12 years old. Professor Orr meditates poignantly on the position of children who suddenly find themselves living out the consequences of a fatal accident and trying to comprehend their part in it.

The Furious Flower Poetry Center’s once-a-decade conference is dedicated this decade to Professor Rita Dove. This gathering of poets and scholars, held at James Madison University, features readings by many of the best established and emerging African American poets writing today—and all of these readings are free and open to the public. The conference began September 24 and continues through Saturday, September 28, with readings, open mics, lectures, and concerts.

Professor Andrew Stauffer spoke to CBC Radio about Book Traces, his crowd-sourced web project to find drawings, marginalia, photos and anything else in copies of nineteenth- and early twentieth-century books. The interview airs this week in Canada and is available for streaming online here. Read more about Book Traces below:

Professors John O’Brien and Brad Pasanek spoke to UVA Today about their new web application for Thomas Jefferson's Notes on the State of Virginia. The application – developed by O’Brien and Pasanek, with the help of students and the University Library’s Scholars’ Lab – includes two versions of Jefferson’s encyclopedic volume: one of the first 1784 printings, which he gave to the Marquis de Lafayette, and a 1787 copy whose pages are full of his handwritten annotations, revisions and personal thoughts.

Professor Gregory Orr spoke to Robin Young on Here and Now about living after an accidental shooting death. Orr reflects on the recent incident in which a 9-year-old girl accidentally shot and killed her instructor at an Arizona firing range, as well as his own tragic experience: when he was 12 years old, he killed a younger brother in a hunting accident. Orr reads from his own poetry and discusses finding meaning after an incomprehensible tragedy.